Gambiaj.com – (BANJUL, The Gambia) – In its latest issue, The Continent magazine delves into the entrenched financial exploitation of African nations by global investment firms, emphasizing the complex relationship between resource extraction and debt dependency. The analysis focuses on mining investments in Senegal, highlighting the stark contrast between the enormous profits reaped by these companies and the persistent poverty and crippling debt cycles imposed on the countries whose resources they continue to exploit.

In Kédougou, Senegal, the reality is stark: poverty persists in the shadow of immense wealth. The region, rich in gold, saw more than half of Senegal’s 17 metric tons of gold exports last year come from the Sabodala mine. Yet, despite this wealth, basic services remain scarce, and opportunities for the local population are limited.

“Gold exploitation leaves pollution for the population, but scarcely any benefits,” says Ahmad Dame Seck, the headteacher at the Dindefelo school in Kédougou. Seck highlights the harsh reality for his students, many of whom graduate only to face unemployment, the challenges of the informal sector, or the perilous journey of migration to Europe.

Endeavour Mining, a UK-based company that acquired the Sabodala mine in 2021, has reaped significant rewards from its operations, earning at least $598 million to date. In its latest financial statements, the company values the Senegalese mine at over $2.5 billion, with additional assets in Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, and Mali valued at nearly $3 billion .

The lion’s share of these profits is distributed among Endeavour Mining’s shareholders, with the Senegalese government receiving a mere 10%. This disparity contributes to the government’s ongoing struggle to generate sufficient revenue, often forcing it to borrow from international markets when the treasury runs dry. In a bitter twist, these loans often come from the same firms profiting from the country’s resource wealth .

A Web of Debt and Exploitation

The new analysis by The Continent reveals that 40% of the shares in Endeavour Mining are held by 17 investment firms, which also trade in Senegal’s sovereign bonds. Among these firms, BlackRock Group, The Vanguard Group, and Fidelity are prominent players, collectively holding over $271 million in Senegalese debt. The same firms earning from Senegal’s gold are also profiting from the country’s financial distress, with interest rates on these bonds reaching up to 7.75% .

This exploitative cycle is not unique to Senegal. Across Africa, private creditors hold approximately 44% of the continent’s national foreign debt, a significant increase from 30% in 2010. Countries like Zambia, Ghana, and Ethiopia have already defaulted on their bond payments, leading to severe economic consequences and forcing governments to seek bailouts from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) under strict conditions .

In contrast, countries like South Africa and Angola, where private creditor loans make up 88% and 78% of national debt, respectively, are particularly vulnerable. Meanwhile, nations like Algeria and Botswana, despite comparable economic conditions, have managed to avoid significant reliance on such high-risk debt .

The Human Cost

Issaga Diallo, an artisanal miner in Bantakokouta, near Kédougou, represents the human face of this economic exploitation. Diallo toils in the gold pits daily, hoping to strike it lucky. Like many in his community, he dreams of escaping the grinding poverty through small-scale mining. But even when he does find gold, it’s sold at prices significantly below the global market rate .

Just as Diallo’s fortunes hinge on uncertain and intermittent success, so too does Senegal’s economy. The government’s ability to service its debt and eventually benefit from its own resources remains precarious. In the short term, however, the profits continue to flow not to the people of Senegal but to the global financial giants that dominate both resource extraction and sovereign lending.